Poll: 26% perceive Obama policies as 'socialist', 22% as liberal

[alp227]

From the Political Animal blog, reporting on the latest CBS/NY Times poll:

Way into the poll — page 26, question 85 — respondents were asked, “How would you mainly describe the policies Barack Obama has pursued as president — as socialist, liberal, moderate, conservative or libertarian?” As near as I can tell, it’s pretty unusual for a major national poll to give respondents some of these choices.

Here’s what people had to say:

Socialist: 26%
Liberal: 22%
Moderate: 28%
Conservative: 6%
Libertarian: 4%
DK/NA: 15%

[AnOhioan]

1. So 48% think he is a socialist or a liberal....

It boggles the mind

[MNBrewer]

2. Even more than that believe Fred Flintstone rode a dinosaur 6000 years ago.

The ignorant masses.

[DevonRex]

3. Goodbye. Nt

[DevonRex]

4. Goodbye. Nt

[ncteechur]

5. that's probably about right

hard righties think he is socialist (26%)

most liberals and moderates think he is liberal to moderate(50%)

hard lefties think he conservative (6%)

not sure who thinks he is libertarian

[Robbins]

6. well

Funny how only 28 percent are right.I think most Obama supporters will admit he's a Moderate.Some of us who support him are more
Liberal than he.The 26 percent who say socialist are crazy.I also think the 6 percent who say conservative and 4 percent who say
Libertarian are among the Obama Is just like Bush cwoad.

[boxman15]

7. I really think terms like that are very limiting.

President Obama is, and campaigned on being, a center-left pragmatist. I'd like to see him be more liberal at times, but he's doing what he said he'd do in 2008. And he's doing a damn good job at it.

But, the far-right and the right thinks he's a socialist, moderates and the not-insane right think he's a liberal, the left thinks he's a moderate, and the far-left thinks he's a conservative. So the numbers look right.